The Room
by evilgoodgal
Summary: Bella is kidnapped by a group of men who have forced Edward to work with them. Edward must try to save both Bella and himself before the group decides to move on to their next victim or before they realize the growing bond between Bella and Edward.
1. Chapter 1, 2

The Room

1

As I attempted to hop over and skirt around the millions of puddles making my walk home my own personal hell, I cursed the day I ever decided to move to Texas. Sure, the university here has the best veterinary program in the U.S., but the constant raining and creepy bugs were bringing forth a misery equal to my passionate love for animals. Fortunately, graduation was just 6 months away, I had a great internship lined up for summer, and was already accepted to vet school for my graduate degree. All in all, I could ignore the constant wet socks and mosquito bites if I kept reminding myself that in less than a year I would be well on my way to living my dream life back in the beautiful state that is Colorado.

By the time I made it home Alice and Rosalie had already finished with dinner and were cleaning up. If my stupid organic chemistry lab didn't continually take 3 hours, I might one day be able to join them.

"Jesus Christ Bella! You look like someone tried to drown you!" For the life of me I could not understand why Alice was always surprised that I got wet when it rained. I mean, for heaven's fucking sake, I was NOT going to walk around carrying an umbrella all day at school just so that by the time I got home, I was presentable for my roommates. It's not like I cared about my hair as much as Rose did about hers. God, that girl does have great hair though…..

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, it's raining…again!" I was surprised at the harshness of my tone. I guess the humidity was getting to me even more than usual. My real life in Denver had practically made me abhor any type of humid weather for as long as I can remember.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I just thought you would accept a ride from your cute lab partner one of these days"

"Ah, as much as I _love _preppy punk wannabes, the walk home isn't so bad. You should try it sometime."

"HA! I will not ruin my Jimmy Choo heels for the sake of a little fresh air"

"Whatever, Alice. I've got to finish my lab write up, so I'll just see you guys in the morning. And I'll be late again tomorrow—I won't get out of my exam until after 8."

As I made it to my room a wave of depression hit. I'm not normally a depressed kind of person, but I am quite moody and I rarely try to fight what I feel like doing. That said, I really did have every intention of finishing the lab, but quickly decided a hot shower was the only thing I really needed to do. After which, I reasoned there's no better follow up than two blissful hours of my favorite soap that I had my TiVo tape earlier in the day. Besides, I'd just get up early and finish the lab tomorrow. Why do today, what you can put off 'til tomorrow? That was my life motto, and I was sticking to it.

***

Despite the forecast for rain, Tuesday was a rather nice December day… apart from me totally failing my physiology exam. Yeah, that kind of sucked. Hard core. Which was why I decided to take the long way home, even though it was already half past 8 and the sun was long gone. I just needed some extra time to cool off and calm down. There was nothing I hated more than doing poorly on a test I actually studied for (which was pretty rare occasion). I am certainly not one to 'toot my own horn' as my grandmother would put it, but I actually am pretty damn smart. So when I study, I expect nothing less than an A. Unfortunately, my game appeared to be off.

The walk through the forest-like park was rather serene. I had to give it to the state, the trees here were beautiful. Old and tall and truly magnificent, they never ceased to amaze me. If tree houses had air conditioners and bathrooms, I could definitely live up there. Well, maybe. If only this big ass state had mountains. And dry air. And less rain. And fewer Texans. Yep, then it would be perfect. It would be home. Jesus! I had to stop thinking like this! There's nothing I can do about my current living situation; besides, I was the one who chose to go here.

I was so distracted by my never-ending geographic debacle, that I nearly missed the sound of something in the bushes to my right. As a normally nervous person, I would have continued walking. But for a brief second I thought I heard a whimper. Immediately my mind was filled with images of a poor, defenseless creature. Perhaps it was a cute dog or rabbit or even opossum. I had never seen an opossum until I moved down here. Either way, my conscious would never allow me to just walk on by without at least trying to help. And hey, if it happened to be a human, well, I suppose I could help too. It was no secret that I much preferred animals to humans. Animals don't lie, animals don't connive, and animals don't leave you. But I regress. The point is I was helpless to my own good intentions.

Later I would wonder if it was because I was so hopeful about the idea of caring for another furry friend that I completely missed any warning signs and didn't even react quickly enough to scream when a man suddenly appeared.

2

Once I regained consciousness I wisely kept my eyes shut. Hopefully the men in the room wouldn't notice the change in my breathing. I always hated the people in movies who just started screaming or talking when they woke up. Seriously! If you keep quiet and pretend to be asleep, then you might be able to find out some important information. At least, that's what I was hoping for. From the sounds of things, there were several men in the….room? With my eyes shut I obviously had no idea where I was. However, I could definitely hear at least 4 different men. But you know men; the assholes always travel in packs. So there were probably more. And considering my head was throbbing, I figured that at least one of them was the guy who had bashed my head in with something painfully heavy.

They appeared to be arguing on whether or not to wake me up. One guy, who had a freakishly deep and terrorizing voice, wanted to get the party started. He wasn't going to wait around for me and my "beauty sleep". Like I said: asshole. Another man, who spoke with an air of authority, wanted to wait a little longer. He was arguing that this would be the last time I ever slept without nightmares; he stated it as if it were the most boring fact on earth. The others seemed to get a kick out of it. Okay…that was not a good sign.

As the men chuckled and began discussing random shit, I tried to get a bearing on what I was laying on. It felt like a hard….metal table? It was cold, that was for sure. The thing that was much more upsetting though, was the fact that my hands were tied above my head and my legs spread apart—as if they were tied to bed posts. This was getting scarier by the minute. I had a massive headache, but I was confident that I had no other injuries.

I guess the man who sounded like he was in charge noticed me squirming minimally and decided I was awake. Damn. And I was trying awfully damned hard to be sneaky. Oh well. I opened my eyes.

"Well, look who's ready to play, gentleman" said a somewhat tall, white, thin man with glasses. He had brownish hair and plain jeans with a button up dress shirt. He was completely unremarkable.

If only I could say the same about the rest of the men in the room. My estimate of 4 assholes was way off. From a quick scan around the room, I figured there to be about 10 guys. Most looked like the turkey for their Thanksgiving meal had just arrived at the table. I decided then and there that I was royally fucked. Some of the guys were just as boring as their leader. Some weren't. One guy looked like a freaking building. He was thick and highly muscular and really quite evil looking. He had short, dirty blonde hair, insanely dark brown eyes, and tattoos up and down his arms. I immediately pegged him as the meanest one in the bunch. One redneck with a mullet also looked terrifying, but he wasn't quite as built and just the fact that he had a mullet made him lose credibility with me. There was another guy standing behind everyone else who looked…different. He was pretty cute, tall, lighter colored hair, and he looked quite worried. I didn't exactly have time to ponder his worries though.

"So, Bella, why don't you tell us something about yourself? My name is James." So leader guy was James. An unremarkable name for an unremarkable guy; fit well enough. And apparently he knew my name. Although tempted to tell him he could go suck his cock, I figured I should just plead the fifth. There was no sense in saying something they already knew or even worse, something they didn't.

"Awww, come on sugar pie, a little conversation never hurt nobody." Mullet man was trying to entice me to speak, but it took all my self-control not to laugh at his hick accent. He was the poster boy for white trash.

"Phil, shut your redneck mouth motherfucker" said the giant with tattoos. "I'm not so interested in what comes out of her mouth…more like what goes in it." His sneer was so disgustingly ferocious, I had to turn away. I was beginning to feel more and more helpless by the minute.

"All of you just be quiet for a minute." James appeared to have easy control over his men, though the big guy didn't actually look like the obedient type. "Bella, if you don't feel like talking, well, I'll just have to start the ball rolling. As you can see, you now belong to us." He went around the room introducing the men. Most of the names I quickly forgot, but a few seemed to stick: worried guy was Edward and huge guy was Mike. Oops, looks like I only remembered two. All things considered, I say that's not too bad. "You are now the main attraction for our little group. Basically, these men want to…learn. Or just have a good time. Or gain experience. It doesn't matter much to me, or even you. All you need to know is that you can scream as much as you want because no one can hear you. You can try to escape but no one has ever managed to even make it out of their room. Speaking of which, this is our living room and behind you is a hallway that leads us to your room. You will spend pretty much every hour in there, unless you misbehave, in which case you will come back out here and be punished." As James spoke, the men in the room appeared to grow more and more excited. I, on the other hand, had no idea how to feel. Terrified, disgusted, helpless, distraught, doomed. The list went on and I was at an utter loss to my emotions.

"This won't make much sense to you right now, but here's the schedule: there are ten guys, including myself. We each are allotted two hours a day with you until your time here is up. If one man finishes early, another may start early. Sometimes our other lives take precedent and we don't show up, but I'm sure you won't mind. We will bring you three meals a day and provide everything you need. Aro here is even a doctor and is at your disposal, shall you ever need him." James nodded his head to a shorter, black haired man with a creeper mustache. "In your room, you have any amenities you'll want. I really do hope you come to enjoy your time with us and I will try to make you as comfortable as possible." Despite his sincerity, I didn't believe him for one minute. Perhaps he really did think he was acting gracious, but crazy was a more befitting adjective.

"So, with no further ado, we will lead you to your room. See you soon." James gave me a smile that sent shivers down my spine. For such a boring guy, his words and expressions would probably haunt me forever.


	2. Chapter 3, 4

3

The room wasn't so bad I suppose. Hell, if I were paying for it, it would probably run me a couple hundred dollars a night at a hotel. It had a huge—king size at least—incredibly soft bed, a modern black desk with paper and pens, a comfy black chair, a simply gorgeous leather maroon recliner in the corner, and the bathroom was to die for. Not only was the shower exquisite (it had one of those sprayers that hangs from the ceiling, so it's like taking a shower in the rain) but also had an enormous tub. The counters were all marble and the toilet was black. At my apartment, 2 girls shared 1 bathroom and it was a standard, cheaply-made bathroom at that. This room had thick black rugs, candles by the tub, and soft lighting.

I took a minute to look myself over. Hair was a mess. Makeup was pretty much non-existent at this point, but I had new clothes. I appeared to be wearing a soft, dark green cotton skirt and loose white cotton blouse. Unfortunately, that was all I was wearing. No panties, no bra. So sometime during my state of unconsciousness, the men found it appropriate to redress me. I wasn't worried I had been raped; I didn't feel anything and I was under the impression that these men liked their women awake while they violated them.

Once I finished admiring the bathroom, I went back to the bedroom and took a minute to enjoy the soft bed. If I weren't so terrified of who would come through the door, I would have gone to sleep. Rather ominously positioned, the bed lay directly in front of the door on the opposite wall. The door was metal, with two locks on the outside. I didn't even have a handle on my side—just a spot for a key to go in. I supposed that was so the men could be locked up with me and then use their key to get out. Looks like I would be here for quite some time. I had no phone, no windows, and no computer; nothing to help me escape. There wasn't even a clock so I could know the time. Talk about psychological torture.

All the panic that had fought to take me over from the minute I woke up started to wash over me. My breath became ragged and tears streaked down my face as I faced the stark realization that I was trapped. I was alone with no way out, with men who wanted to do terrible things to me, and nothing to defend myself with. So I just cried. I sobbed and yelled and choked on my own tears as I fell into a horrible depression. I was screaming as loud as I ever thought I would, yet no one came. I don't know how long I stayed curled up, weeping on the bed, but it felt like hours. In fact, I was pretty sure I fell asleep at sometime. When I woke up though, I was still crying. I hadn't even known it was possible to cry in your sleep unless you were having a bad dream. Hell, I was living a bad dream. After I calmed down for a while, I began to reminisce. I thought about what time it might be and what Alice and Rosalie would be doing. I wondered if they had called the cops yet. I thought about my family—my brother and sister and parents back in Colorado. I wondered when they would get the news that I was missing. I thought about how long they would keep searching before they just figured I was dead. I hoped it wouldn't be too long. I was never going to make it out of here alive and I didn't want them to keep hoping for me to return. I thought about what kind of life I might have lived once I graduated and became a vet. Would I get married? Have kids? How many? Most of all, I wondered about the time. If I was unconscious for maybe…3 hours and their little introduction took 1 hour, then it would be… almost 1am. Surely I would be more tired though, right? Maybe I was unconscious for much, much longer then. I had no idea.

As much as I wanted to, I couldn't stay curled up on that bed forever. Giving up wouldn't do me any good. I reluctantly got up and walked around the room until I decided I would sit at the desk. The pens were nice—the kind that just glide across the paper. I didn't know what I would write, I mean, I really doubted they would let me send a letter out, but anything would be better than sitting here in misery. Unfortunately for me, just as I entertained that thought, I heard the locks on my door unlocking.

4

I quickly glanced around the room in hopes of finding a hiding spot. I thought I might be able to hide under the bed, but that would just put me in a defenseless position. I settled for standing to the right of the bed, not too close to any wall though. As the door began to open, I hoped that it was the police or army (who doesn't have that fantasy?) or even my family. To my utter horror though, it was mullet-man.

"Hey, hey, hey, sweet thing. You ready to get the party started?" Mullet-man's southern drawl made him sound even slower than he looked. Despite the horror I was feeling, I had to stifle a nervous laugh at the way he pronounced "thing".

"Stay away from me you fuckin' hick!" It may have sounded intimidating in my head, but I may have well as been a six year old girl in pigtails considering how threatening it actually sounded.

"Aw, come on honey buns, I just be wantin' me some lovin'."

"Fuck off."

"That aint no way to talk to your man." His tone was becoming increasingly vicious as he took a couple steps toward me. I put my hands up and tried to back up quickly, but ran into the wall. I was quite surprised at how quickly I became cornered.

"Stay the fuck back or I swear to god I will rip your balls off." I was hoping any sentence with a man's balls and the word "rip" together would deter him just a bit, but if anything, it just got him more excited. He gave me a retarded smile and closed the gap between us considerably. He was within arms reach now.

"You listen up little mama, you gonna get down and suck me long and hard or I'll slap that pretty face of yours 'till I see blood." I don't know why he ever thought a mere threat would make me comply, but he was already looking down to unbuckle his pants. It was at this point I saw my opportunity. With all the force I could muster—which was quite a bit (plus I took karate when I was younger)— I kicked him square in the crotch. Mullet-man went down faster than I ever thought possible. To my extreme amusement he cried out like a little girl as well. Once he was down I punched him in the face (which hurt like a bitch) and ran to the bathroom and slammed shut the door. There was no lock, so I sat on the floor with my back against it. I had no doubt he would be able to push it open, but hopefully he was in too much pain to try.

"You fucking bitch, I'm gonna tear you a new one! Get out here right now goddammit!!" He was already at the door and banging; looks like he wasn't in that much pain after all. He quickly turned the knob and started pushing. I braced as well as I could. Unfortunately, Mullet-man appeared to have quite a deceiving amount of strength. He had the door open within a minute.

"You slutty, whorish bitch! You done bought yous'self a new enemy!" He yelled as he grabbed me by my hair and pulled me into the room. I tried to stand up to defend myself, but he put his boot in my stomach and knocked all the air out of my chest. My screaming didn't deter him one bit. He slapped me twice in the face while keeping a hold of my shirt and kicked me again in the stomach. After that I closed my eyes and curled into a ball. It felt like I was being thrown against a boulder. I don't know how many times he hit or kicked me and I was sure he at least fractured a few ribs. Luckily, he appeared to tire himself out after a few minutes.

"Next time, I'm gonna fuck you so hard you's think this wa'nt nothing!" He gave me one last kick to the back and left the room. I could hear keys jingling, so I assumed I was right about using their keys to get out. After he left I continued to lie on the floor debating whether or not moving to the bed would cause more or less pain. Eventually I decided less.

Although standing up made me realize just how bruised I would be, the soft bed was a thousand times better than the hard floor. I slowly got under the covers and closed my eyes, too tired from my last crying spell to shed any more tears. I simply laid there wishing I were somewhere else. Before I knew it I was fast asleep. I didn't dream, which wasn't unusual. Actually, I had a remarkable tendency to sleep like a rock. My mother used to joke that not even a marching band could wake me. In a place where you're safe, that's a plus. Here, it's a huge disadvantage. I suddenly realized what a great disadvantage it was when I woke up and realized someone had entered the room without me ever waking.

I didn't hear his breathing—he was very quiet—but saw him sitting on the recliner watching me. He was the one who looked least threatening if I could remember correctly…what was his name? I think it had something to do with a 'D'. . . . I knew he could see me staring at him. I thought about jumping up to run to the bathroom again, but that plan obviously hadn't worked with Mullet-man and I was still in too much pain to put up a very good fight. Luckily, he didn't appear to be moving at all nor making any attempt to threaten me. So there we were, staring at each other.

"Hello, my name is Edward. Are you hurt badly?" Oh, Edward. See, I knew it had a D in it! His voice was so soothing I didn't want to even fathom the idea that he wanted to hurt me. How could such an angel like voice belong to a rapist? For that matter, how could such a handsome man be capable of such evil? But then again, I was here and he was here and so far the men in this place were not nice.

"Why? Do you like to be the cause of all the pain inflicted upon your women?"

"No! Of course not, I mean, I don't want you to be in any pain at all. You have to believe me, I mean you no harm."

"Yeah, right." That was pretty much all I could say. I was completely surprised by his words. I sure as hell didn't believe him, but why would he even try to convince me he was safe?

"I know that it looks bad, but you really can trust me. I don't want to see you hurt. I'm not like these other guys. I don't want to be here." The sincerity in his eyes made me doubt my confidence that he was evil. But it was not enough for me to trust him.

"Uhhh…" I may not have trusted him yet, but I honestly had no idea of what to say. He shifted in response and leaned forward. This movement was met by my own flustered scramble to get to the other side of the bed. However, I hadn't realized I was already on the other side and thus fell directly onto the hard floor.

"OW! Goddammit!" My throat ached with the sudden scream, but the pain in my back was much more intense. I thought about getting back up and quickly decided that just laying there sounded okay. I ended up rolling over though, in kind of a fetal position. During all of this, Edward moved around to the foot of the bed. I didn't look up when he talked.

"Are you alright?" Edward sounded mostly concerned, but I thought I could detect a stifling of laughter.

"Go away." I felt like hell and since he wasn't attacking me, maybe he would leave. Ha! I really doubted it would work. In fact, I was so vulnerable right now that I half expected him to drop the nice guy act and get on with his business. After several moments of silence though, I decided to look up. Just as I did, I saw him put his key in the hole and walk out the door. What the fuck? Not that I didn't appreciate him not being here, but what the fuck? Was he really telling the truth when he said he meant me no harm? I had no idea what to think and now in addition to being terrified, I was also confused and curious about this guy, Edward.


	3. Chapter 5, 6

5

It took a while for the ache in my back to go away. Once it did, I decided to clean myself up a bit. I took another look around the bathroom as I emptied my bladder and washed my face with the lavender scented soap provided. It was obvious the men had no help; no woman in her right mind would wash her face with a soap clearly meant for her body. It was nice though to feel a little bit cleaner. The shower looked amazing and the towel hanging up was incredibly soft. But I just didn't feel safe enough to get undressed and get under the water, no matter how soothing I knew it would be. I spent a little more time scrubbing my neck and arms and pulling back my hair into a tighter ponytail. My nerves were still shot and I was an emotional rollercoaster, but now I felt like I had accomplished something and might be able to come up with some knew ideas.

I went back into the room and sat at the desk. I wondered what time it was. At this point any guess would be so completely wrong. I was pretty awake, so maybe it was morning? Or maybe I had slept really long earlier and now it was afternoon? What day was it? As I focused more and more on the time I became increasingly frustrated. I wrote down everything I knew: December 2008, cool room (as in temperature, not style, even though it was pretty decent), maybe underground? Seeing how little I knew made me want to start screaming again. I really was a lost cause. Nothing I could do would ever get me out of this hell hole. I gave up on trying to write things down and decided to look through the drawer to see if anything of use was there. Nothing remarkable; just more paper, some sticky notes (why did they think I needed all this shit??), a couple books (Jane Austin and some Shakespearean plays), and a few pieces of candy. And while I like a snickers bar every once in a while, no amount of candy would make me feel any better about this situation. I now decided that the men here (or the one in charge) wanted to make me feel happy (nice room and candy) while they attacked me and even worse, tried to make me read Shakespeare. I appreciate the famous writer, think his work is amazing, and understand exactly none of it. I always wanted to be one of those people who can quote him and sound all smart and sophisticated. Unfortunately, even if I could memorize his lines, I would never know when to use it because I have no idea what the sentences mean!

I once again gave up and decided that a little creative writing might make me feel better. I was not the kind of person that writes and does art, but why the hell would it matter now? I tried my hand at some poetry. After a good five minutes (was it five? Was it only one? Maybe it had been ten minutes already…), my few scribbled lines were quite pathetic.

_I hate this place._

_I don't know what rhymes with place._

_This is so not a poem. _

Well, I guess I could finally cancel any dreams I had about being a famous author. I settled for grabbing Hamlet and going to sit in the recliner. After a mere page and a half I was already bored and confused. So much for that idea. I didn't know which was worse: dying of boredom or having another guy walk through the door. Well, ok, the latter is obviously worse, but boredom is a close second. Just as I pondered these thoughts, the locks started clicking again and a shorter man with a black mustache walked in. What had James said his name was….hmmm? Aaron? Andrew? Oh! He was the doctor wasn't he? Standing up to fight hadn't worked against mullet-man, so I remained seated but scooted back so I was in the middle of the room.

"Good day, Bella. I don't know if you remember, but I am Aro, the doc of the house. How are you feeling?"

"Peachy. Why do you care?" Perhaps if I could keep him talking he wouldn't do whatever it was that he came in here to do.

"I'm in charge of keeping you healthy, so naturally, I care. I have a couple of pills I need you to take; I'll go get you some water from the bathroom, hold on." He went into the bathroom and filled a small cup with water and returned. He held out his hand which had 2 while pills and one pink one.

"These two are vitamins" he pointed to the white ones, "and this is a hormone supplement that will prevent you from menstruating" he finished as he pointed to the pink one. Vitamins and birth control, huh? He could be lying I supposed, but what was the point. Besides, if I didn't take the pills he could probably just tie me down and give me shots; which would hurt a hell of a lot more. I opened my hand and he dumped them into it. I quickly threw the pills into my mouth and took the water. It was quite tepid and the powdery taste of the pills was gross, but I only tasted it for a second.

"Now that that's all taken care of, I have your food." Aro said. I really wished he would say breakfast or lunch or dinner so I could have some bearing on the time. He walked over to the door and opened it. On the ground outside was a tray which he grabbed and set on the desk. There was a glass of orange juice, a sandwich, and a bag of regular potato chips. How mundane.

"Well, I hope you enjoy, and I will see you later. Goodbye". With a great look of boredom he left the room. I was under the impression that he had done this many a time before. I thought about going on a hunger strike, but quickly decided against it. I would need all the strength I could get. I quickly ate the sandwich (ham and Swiss cheese) and downed the juice. I saved the chips for later. Don't know why I saved them exactly…James had stated that I would get three meals a day; better safe than sorry I suppose. Anyway, I was tired again and laid down on the bed. I had just closed my eyes when I found myself blissfully asleep.

6

Although I rarely dream, this night (or day) I had quite the vivid experience. I was walking the halls of one of the campus buildings in a hurry. In fact, towards the end of the dream I was in a panic because I was late. But I have no idea where I was heading. Mostly the dream consisted of briskly walking up and down the halls in frantic searching, yet the whole time I felt like someone was watching me. It wasn't a creeper though—it felt more like someone was watching over me, protecting me. I'm not sure what it was that I needed protection from, but the person's presence felt very important. Although I was still worried about being late, I felt like I had nothing else to be afraid of—which was really odd. It was the most bizarre feeling I've ever dreamed. Of course, right before I woke up a giant, green blob—kind of like Flubber—tried to sell me some cheese. That was pretty weird. Either way, the dream was a nice break from reality.

When I woke up rather suddenly, I felt like I had only taken a nap—maybe an hour? (30 minutes? If I didn't get a clock soon, I was sure I would lose my mind) I was beginning to wonder why I had even woken up when the door opened yet again; I realized the locks opening were what had awakened me. Although still drowsy, I quickly jumped out of bed and took my defensive stance in the middle of the room. The man who had come in was maybe about six feet tall, medium build, with shaggy brown hair. He was wearing typical dark jeans, a polo shirt, and if I had to guess, I'd say he was mid-twenties. Overall, he looked like the typical frat guy; in my experience most frat guys are complete jerks—so I guess he was in the right place. He began to walk toward me—I think he was surprised that I was awake—but moved with an air of nonchalance. In fact, he looked like he was supremely confident in his ability to do whatever he wanted. After a second look over though, I thought he looked high. It was kind of awkward, just watching him walk to me like I was some animal that didn't understand what he was doing. It really pissed me off.

Once he was in arms reach (and I could smell the weed) he grabbed me by my shoulders before I could swing my arms away. His grip was tight and I knew I would have bruises in a few hours. He quickly tried to knock me down by swinging his foot behind my legs and pushing me backwards. I responded by my usual high-pitched scream and just flat out tackled him. We both went crashing down on the floor, me on top. He was truly surprised that I had taken him down so quickly and after calling a bitch his face turned red with either anger or embarrassment. I have seen a lot of action movies and own every season of Buffy, but now had no idea what to do. Unfortunately, he did. With a painful amount of force he slammed his head into mine and knocked me to the ground. Dazed, I tried to get up, despite the fact that he was now on top of me. My head was throbbing and tears were running down my face. I tried to scream but the noise just made my head hurt even more. I kicked and thrashed and twisted, but didn't seem to get anywhere. He had me pinned down, holding my hands above my head. I was worried that I was a lost cause at this point, thinking maybe I should just give up. Fortune would have it though that I saw for the first time how much he was struggling. His brow was beaded with sweat and his breath ragged. Such a sight filled me with hope that I might still have a chance. I put new fury into my thrashing, even breaking free one of my hands. I don't know how long we fought—5 minutes? 3? He wasn't even wearing I watch so I could see the time. Anyway, I managed to punch him a couple times and eventually knock him over. I somehow crawled away from his grasp (my stupid skirt made crawling insanely difficult) and ran to the other side of the bed. He stood up, exhausted, and faced me from the other side.

"What the hell?! You know fighting will just make this whole time worse for you, don't you?" He said between gasps for air. I know I'm not in any kind of athletic shape (although I love to play almost any sport), but this guy was seriously out of breath. Maybe he was just used to his women just rolling over and playing dead. Maybe he was just so high that that's what he thought I would do. Either way, I was marginally confident in my ability to survive this round. I was quickly proven right when he heaved one last giant sigh and walked out the room, cursing under his breath. For maybe five whole minutes I was actually happy. I actually thought I had a chance of surviving this place without too much harm. Unfortunately that feeling was squashed as the giant guy with tattoos entered the room.


	4. Chapter 7, 8

A/N: Thanks to those few readers! And I apologize ahead of time for the abrupt ending, I meant to add more, but things got complicated. Reviews are pure awesomeness!

7

I don't know exactly how long it was before I got a decent amount of rest again. The last time I had slept was after the doc had brought me my pills and sandwich. And although I lost track of who came in the room and for how long (as if I had any way of telling), I was pretty sure that everyone had their chance with me, including Mullet-man who I've now seen twice. My downhill spiral all started with the huge guy. It felt like he tortured me for days. I know that the most time he could have spent was only two hours, but it felt much longer. I never even stood a chance with him—for as big as he was, he was also insanely fast. Hell, I couldn't even get in one good punch or kick before I was down. For a long time all he did was talk and kick. I'm not sure which I preferred. I found out that Huge guy was also known as Mike and that he belonged to a group of bikers outside this little hell hole. I don't know much about bikers apart from what my cousin Sara has told me. She got involved with one guy from a prominent biker group in Tennessee—luckily, he was one of the more chivalrous guys. Apparently, a lot of bikers are known to share their ladies; Sara's guy was too possessive to do that though, thank god. Anyway, this Mike guy sounded like he was in love with this biker pack—it was all he talked about: where they went, what kind of motorcycle he had, how powerful he is, bla bla bla. I'm pretty sure I lost consciousness a couple of times throughout the ordeal and I don't know how many times he was on top of me; I am quite certain I had quite the concussion.

After Mike left it was only minutes before the next guy came in. He seemed to stay for days as well—that's really the only thing I can remember; that everyone was with me for so long. I have no idea what their names were, what they looked like, or even which ones I was able to fight off. That was the routine for the next infinite amount of time: they came, I fought, sometimes I won and sometimes I lost. And as soon as one left the room, another took his place. Every time I ended up on the ground it was easier to black out—I'm sure my face was swollen and disgusting from all the hits I had taken, not to mention all the bruises that covered my body. I've had concussions before (the joys of high school basketball) but the pain in my head never went away. Even when I wasn't there, when I managed to drift away to a place that was anywhere but that room, I could still feel the pain. For a while I tried to imagine myself in a vacation type place; you know the kind: white, sandy beaches with the clearest blue water you've ever seen, and a brilliant sun that heats up your skin as you lie there just basking in your perfect happiness. But that fantasy was to unrealistic to stick—I kept being thrust back into reality to quickly. After a few different attempts and after several guys had already come and gone, I finally found my perfect getaway: Lory State Park. It was like any other state park in Colorado—beautiful mountains, a nice lake, amazing hiking trails, etc. I used to hike there all the time when I lived in Fort Collins. It was surprisingly easy to go back and imagine myself surrounded by the trees and shrubs and streams and rolling Rocky Mountains. I swear I could even hear the crickets and bees and all the other bugs that had so often terrified me as I spent hours in the park wandering the trails. In my fantasies though, I was off the path—just standing in the forest in a patch of sunlight, alone and peaceful. It was amazing when I was there; no matter what the men where doing to my body, I couldn't really care. When I was in the woods, nothing mattered.

I do remember the last guy to come in was James—the leader. He didn't talk much; he just got straight down to business. I was surprised he was the last to come in. I would think that such an evil man would want to be first. I don't know and it didn't really change much I suppose. By the time James was in my room I was already exhausted, beaten, and too traumatized to even put up a fight; I just went straight into the woods. He might have been trying to talk to me, but I couldn't really make out what he was saying as I fell deeper into my alternate reality. It was so peaceful there, besides the ache in my head that is. After James left I somehow made it to the maroon recliner and just curled up on it. I stayed like that for a long time (but I don't know how much time) before I was ready to get up. I was terrified the cycle would start again, that the men would just start coming back in. But after what I thought was an hour or so, I decided I might be safe enough to go take a shower. I felt so dirty, so disgraced. A shower wouldn't really erase what happened, but I could always pretend. I became very good at pretending.

The shower was heavenly. The hot water relaxed both my mind and body. My muscles, slowly and one by one, began to let go of all the tension. And my mind, crowded with pain and fear and revulsion, eventually became blank. I just let the water run forever it seemed. Once my fingers started turning all prune like, though, I decided I might as well get out. The towels were so soft and I took an insane amount of time drying off. I was even lucky enough to have looked around the cabinets some more and found some clean clothes—still just a skirt and loose, ¾ sleeve length blouse, but they were a welcome sight nonetheless. After getting dressed I took an extra long time just combing through my hair with a tan, wide toothed comb they had provided. Too bad there weren't any styling products; my poor hair felt naked. Once I ran out of things to do in the bathroom I faced the door. Just returning to the room seemed like an unbearable torture, as if my return to it signaled some kind of readiness for the men to start coming again. In fact, if it hadn't been so steamy in the bathroom I probably would have held out in there. So, with one final sigh of despair I opened the door.

8

I just about had a heart attack when I saw one of the men sitting on the leather recliner. It took several minutes and several deep breaths before I recognized the man as Edward, and even longer before I remembered that he was the only one besides the doctor who hadn't attacked me. I debated going back to the bathroom and just hiding in there, but eventually decided that……actually, I don't know why I didn't go back in there. I just know that I decided to stay in the room, to even go sit down on the desk chair. I wasn't exactly afraid of Edward, but I turned my chair so I wouldn't have my back to him, lest he decide to jump me. I stared and my hands for a while, stared at the desk, stared at my toes, but eventually my eyes made it to Edward. Once they did, I found I could not contain myself; I had to speak.

"Do you know what time it is?" My voice sounded so timid I was embarrassed for myself. The last time we met I had at least been harsh, this time I was nothing but a weak and broken girl.

"A little after three a.m." Edward spoke gently with sadness in his voice.

Three a.m.? Really? I couldn't believe how horrible I was at guessing the time. I guess when you have no outside light, no regular sleeping schedule, no nothing, it makes telling the time impossible.

"What day is it?" I don't know what I expected the answer to be. It felt like I had been here my whole life, just sitting, waiting for the men to keep coming in. Like my memories of my family and friends and school were all just dreams; nothing more than creative fantasies I made up, like my woods.

"It's Thursday" he said "December 5th. By 9 this morning you will have been here for 36 hours."

"36?" I mumbled the question more to myself than to him. How could it have been only a day and a half? I'd been there so long…so many things had happened…so much pain…so much time…so much waiting. How could it be that just two days ago I had been texting my friends, thinking about ditching classes, and studying for tests? I was at an utter loss on how to deal. I couldn't even cry, though I wanted to. I couldn't get up and scream, though I was dying to. All I could manage was a dejected whimper as I crumpled to the ground and leaned against the bed with my arms around my knees.

"I'm so sorry. If I could…if I could do anything to help I would. I…I just don't know how this all happened" Edward said as he slowly sat down on the floor, about 5 feet from me. He looked so tortured inside it almost hurt _me_ to look at _him_ in pain. And yet I could not look away from his face. He was so beautiful; his eyes were so deep I felt like I could live in them forever, they were as comforting as my woods. And his strong cheek bones gave his face a handsome maturity I felt I could trust. Then there were his arms. Oh, his arms. He had the most breathtakingly defined arms; not lanky and skinny but not bodybuilder muscle-y either. I knew that those were ridiculous thoughts—he was just here for one thing and one thing only. I didn't know why he was playing these games with me, but if I could just keep him talking, perhaps gain some more information on my situation…

"Could you…could you just tell me what's going on? Who are these men? Why…" I couldn't finish my sentence as my voice cracked. After a deep breath I continued, "What's going to happen?" I half expected him to laugh at my weakness. But his face was full of understanding and compassion. I wanted to think he was good and heroic and that I could trust him. I quickly thought again though; if I let myself go down that path it would just hurt more when he finally started to behave like the rest of them.

"You're…I guess you could say kidnapped. But I suppose you already knew that. These men, they…they take women, mostly college students, and they just do whatever they want with them." Edward shook his head in disgust. "James—the so called Director—organizes everything and is the one who picks out which men are allowed to join the _club_." He spoke with such hate that I didn't understand why he was here. "They don't have a name so as not to make it easier for the cops. Not like the cops ever have a chance. Chuck is actually one of the senior detectives on the force here in town. How perverted is that?" Edward stopped to give a humorous laugh. He looked like he was going to start again, but I interrupted.

"Which one is Chuck?"

"He's the one with glasses—I think you actually broke them today, he was really pissed off" he said with a smile.

Why would he think my fighting back against his friends was funny? I couldn't stand not knowing why Edward was talking to me.

"What are you doing? Why are you talking to me? Why are you being so nice?" Once the first question came out, it was hard to stop the rest. I thought he might retaliate by hitting me, but mostly he just looked ashamed.

"I don't want to hurt you, Bella. I know there's nothing I can say that will ever make you trust me, especially after what has happened to you…but I am nothing like these animals! I hate them with every fiber of my being, I hate them for the way they act, for the things they say, for every bit of pain they caused you…" Edward's voice was strained with rage. After a minute of trying to calm down he continued, "It's hard to explain why I'm even here—it's so stupid. See, I'm a student at the university too but I worked part time with the forest service. My job was to help survey the land and keep notes on the health of the trees—there's been a lot of fungi threatening the local vegetation—and one day I stumbled upon these guys. They were loud and obnoxious, half of them were drunk…anyway, I was going to ask them what they were doing so far from any of the trails, I mean, visitors get lost all the time, but when I got close I realized they were dragging along a girl. I thought she was just unconscious…" His eyes were completely focused on something else, as if he were seeing it all over again. "I had no idea what to think, but when they threw her down and started dousing her with lighter fluid I knew she was dead. I was going to go get help but…they saw me and grabbed me too. I think they were going to kill me, but then James came… he…he started asking me all these questions…who was I…why was I here…" Edward paused and shook his head, snapping him back into reality. "In the end, it was either join them or die. If I had known…if I knew then what I know now, I would have begged for death."


	5. Chapter 9

A/N: I apologize for the giant lapse in time between updates there; stupid work! Anyway, I'm so excited that Bella and Edward are moving along that hopefully the chapters will come out quicker! And again, please review!

9

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Was he telling the truth? Was Edward truly innocent? If I had at least one friend in this awful place…well, then maybe, just maybe I might be able to keep my sanity! As my optimism grew I had to give myself a reality check; if he really was just playing some sick game with my head...

"How long have you been here?"

"Almost 6 months now" he said with despair.

"Why haven't you told somebody? Why haven't you gotten out? How many girls have you seen murdered?! You're nothing but an accomplice!" I was suddenly furious. How could he just sit around while all these women were traumatized and killed? My brief optimism quickly turned into hateful realism: Edward may have started out as innocent, but he is no victim.

"You think I just sit around here and let them die? You think I want to be here? How could anyone want this?!" he grew angrier with each question—but I didn't care. I wanted him to answer my questions.

"What else am I supposed to think?" I yelled back, matching his fury.

Edward shook his head and sighed. "Yes, I tried to get out. Yes, I tried to tell people about them. I even tried to save some of their victims. But it was all useless. When I told the police, Chuck just turned it all around to make me look like a crazy drug addict—he's got the entire department wrapped around his finger! And it's not like I can just leave—they threaten to kill my family, my friends, everyone I know. They can do it too! Who knows how many people they have killed by now; they've probably gotten away with dozens of murders. I would warn my family, but there's no way I can get _everyone_ I know to relocate until I can be sure that everyone in this stupid group is in prison. And even then, how are we supposed to know that previous members won't just step in for James once he's gone? Hell, I couldn't even manage to save either of the girls they took while I've been here. The first one, Lauren, didn't even make it a day. I tried to help her escape as soon as she got here. I didn't know that they have cameras everywhere, because as soon as we got out of the room they were there. They made me watch when they strangled her just so I wouldn't do it again. The second one, Angela, lasted almost 5 months" his voice began to crack. "I brought her books and pictures from her place…things that would comfort her, but be able to hide from James. I even started bringing her drugs near the end so she wouldn't have to face day after day of this stupid room with no mental barrier. I was working on a plan to get her out of here—trying to figure out how to save everyone we know from retaliation—when they decided they wanted some one new." He looked away now; I could tell that just telling me what happened was incredibly painful.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know." I had no idea how to comfort him. For the first time in, well I guess in thirty some odd hours, I was no longer focused on my own pain.

"We became friends. Angela and I; I began to see her as my sister. I'm an only child, but I always wondered what it would be like to be an older brother. Angela…" his eyes began to brim with tears. It broke my heart just listening to him. "… She looked to me to save her and I couldn't. I killed her. I may not have been the one to snap her neck, but it was me—I was the one who couldn't get her out in time." Edward shook his head and stared at the ground. I was completely mortified. Had I really just accused him of being an accomplice? A part of me still doubted his story—you can never be too safe—but that part was small and weak. The rest of me was filled with sadness, for Edward and Angela and Lauren—all victims of this stupid gang—but also with joy. Joy that I wasn't alone. I didn't have to be afraid of everyone. I actually had a…friend? (That little unsure part of me still warned against trusting him) I was so glad to know that I wasn't the only one here trying to escape. Hell, maybe we could even make it out! My optimism skyrocketed without my consent. Usually I stay pessimistic so I don't get disappointed, but I couldn't help myself. I wasn't alone!

"I'm sorry I doubted you. I can't imagine what you've been through." Even to me that sounded stale. I was so horrible at comforting people! But Edward just lifted his head and laughed.

"Me? What I've been through? I hate to bring you back to reality, but you're the one with bruises all over your body. Seriously, are you sure you're okay?"

"Oh. Yeah. I'll live." Then I rephrased. "Well, I won't die from these wounds, if that's what you mean."

"I swear I will get you out. I'm not gonna lose you. Not this time. I'm not letting these fucking assholes get away with this anymore. I'm not sure how, but I promise that you will make it out."

"Thank you." Wow. A guy—a really hot guy—just promises to be my knight in shining armor and all I can say is 'thank you'? It was so absurd! Here he is vowing to save my life and I can't think of anything to say other than a retarded sentiment you say to people who serve you lunch or hold doors open? It was ridiculous. I just started laughing. It was all I could do. And I couldn't stop; the laughter rocked my entire body. And although it hurt, it also felt good, it felt nice to laugh.

"What is so funny?" Edward's look of confusion only made me laugh harder.

"It's just that…I have…nothing….to say!" I managed to say between gasps for air. "I mean, you just…" I couldn't even finish I was laughing too hard. It took a few moments but eventually I composed myself again.

"I'm sorry. I'm probably beginning to lose my mind."

"Ha, maybe they hit you in your head one too many times" he said with a chuckle. Not two seconds after he said it though did he become embarrassed for what he thought was an offensive joke. "Oh god. I'm sorry; I didn't mean to say that. It just came out, I'm so sorry."

"No, it was funny! Really, it was. I live for that shit. In fact, I'm the one usually apologizing for my jokes. Everyone is so damned sensitive these days!"

"Ah, I know the feeling. But in all seriousness, you do look really beat up. Maybe, and I know how awful this is going to sound, maybe you shouldn't struggle so much. Maybe it'll be easier if you don't fight."

"I know that's probably the smart thing to do, but that's just not me. If I can keep even one of them away, then I'll take the bruises and broken ribs." I was way too competitive to give up. Especially now that I knew I could rest while he was here.

"I understand. It just doesn't look good."

"Oh gee, thanks. Here I am, kidnapped and all, and you call me ugly." I gave him a little smirk so he knew I was joking. He returned it with an absolutely stunning smile. His perfect teeth, the squint in his eyes, his ideally shaped lips; he belonged in a modeling catalog. I made a mental note to make him smile more often.

"Very funny. So, Bella, what do you do when you aren't busy defending yourself from psychopaths?"

The conversation flowed easily between us. It was as if we were at a Starbucks rather than a lovely rape-den. Talking with him was so easy and it took my mind off the situation better than my mental escapes to the mountains. I learned so much about him too; all the places he's visited, the pets he had as a kid, his hope for a meaningful career in forestry. We talked for a good chunk of time and I was actually enjoying myself. Sure I was being held against my will and being attacked every few hours, but right then, in my time with Edward, I was happier than I'd been in years—not that I'd been unhappy, mind you. I just never went out, talked to guys, or interacted with people other than my roommates. With Edward I was not only talking to a fuckin' hottie, but he was actually going to save me. He was going to protect me. I don't know any woman that doesn't dream of having a hero. I do believe the word I'm looking for is 'giddy'. Talking to Edward actually made me giddy. It was a wonderful thing.


	6. Chapter 10

A/N: I had to get a few random things in place with this chp, but now I'll finally be able to be a bit more descriptive now. I feel like I've played it safe long enough. But don't worry, nothing too offensive is in store.

10

A little after 5 in the morning Edward said he was going to go get us some breakfast. Although he had already spent his allotted time, he said that we did not need to worry about the guys coming in any time soon; most of them had jobs or just liked to sleep late. James' so called schedule of two-hour increments was more like a random guideline—nobody really paid attention to it. It reminded me of work: at orientation (most big companies hold orientations for new employees, or at least most of the ones I worked at) the owner would list a thousand rules that are so important. Then you actually start work and learn that half the people don't even know them and the other half just don't care. I guess that would explain why I saw mullet-man twice then. What a line cutter. In elementary school we would have yelled "no cuts, no butts, no alligator guts". It's an awfully catchy phrase, although I have no idea how it originated. Anyway, at the mention of everyone sleeping I immediately asked about the chances of escaping, but Edward just explained that in addition to cameras everywhere, the room is wired with motion detectors. If there's no movement within either the bathroom or actual room for 10 min, the alarms go off. Apparently Lee (I couldn't remember which one he was) was quite the techie and created these to be sensitive enough to catch even the slightest of movements—so usually they wouldn't go off when I slept. Even if I did sleep perfectly still though, Edward said that they recently installed a heat sensor in the bed to stop the alarms from going off too often. Apparently Angela kept accidently setting off the alarms, which really pissed James off (Edward's face showed considerable grief as he said her name). Now it took no heat in the bed plus no movement to set off the alarms. Even with the 10 minute grace period though, we couldn't escape. We were 30min away from the nearest road—this little underground bunker that served as this hell hole was deep in the woods—and even if we could make it out, James would just grab our families. He knew everything about everyone. When Edward told me how James even kept files on my roommates, Alice and Rosalie, I pretty much decided then and there that I was going to have kill James.

* * *

When Edward left I took the chance to try and fix myself up again. My hair was almost dry—it's pretty thick but if I leave it down it dries in a couple hours—and I wished for a curling iron or hair straightner or even just a blow drier. I settled for a messy bun. The bruises on my face and back were getting darker and there really wasn't anything I could do about it. I found some chap stick in a drawer in the bathroom; I prefer Burt's Bees lip balm, but mostly they're all the same. Edward said he would be back in about half an hour. He also said he was going to bring me a small watch. I think after the fourth time I asked for the time he realized how caught up on time I really was. It was so amazing to actually know what time it is—I felt like if I didn't constantly ask him then I would suddenly forget and have to go back to guessing. Really, we take time for granted. How many times do we look at the clock each day? Our lives are ruled by time and you just don't realize how important it is until it's gone.

I spent a little while walking around the room, but eventually made it to the bed. It was so soft; I was suddenly swept with weariness. I knew Edward was going to be right back and I knew that if I lied down I would fall asleep instantly, but when you're tired—really tired—nothing else matters. That was one of the reasons I could never do homework at night; once I decided I was tired, it was over. So I caved in and went to sleep. It was a wonderful feeling; knowing that you can go to sleep and not have to worry about being attacked while you are so completely defenseless. That small part of me was still nervous about trusting him so much, but that's to be expected given the situation. I tried to appease that little part by arguing that if I had met him anywhere else, I would have no doubts of his kindness. Except, I didn't meet him anywhere else; I met him here, in this evil room, said that tense voice in my head. Although I saw its point, I wasn't going to let such a small doubt ruin my hope. Really, hope was all I had. Well, hope and now Edward. With that settled I quickly drifted to sleep. Normally I have nightmares maybe once every few years—it's very rare for me to dream of scary things. I see a lot of scary movies and love haunted houses, but in my sleep I usually don't get scared. Usually. This time was different. I was in one of my classes just listening to lecture when I saw Edward in the door way. He was motioning for me to come, so naturally, I got up to go to him. As I turned though, somebody grabbed my hand and pulled me back. I turned around to see who it was and instantly I was back in the room—complete horror washed over me. It was like I knew everything that was going to happen but I couldn't leave, I couldn't wake up. And that was the whole nightmare: just sitting in the room waiting for the door to open. I was paralyzed with fear and I couldn't understand why I was no longer in class. For such a simple dream, it was amazing how much terror enveloped me. I felt like my lungs were collapsing, like my muscles were all frozen in place and I nothing in the world could move me. My eyes were fixated on the door; soon there was nothing but the door. I wanted more than anything to look away, to get up and move, to do anything but wait. I was struggling against my own body, willing it to move, as the lock started to turn.

The next thing I knew, I was surrounded by blackness. My muscles were tight and my whole body was tense—clutching something. I was shaking, but not from being cold. In fact, I was pressed up against a fantastic heat source as it wrapped around me; it was so comfortable I nudged closer and buried my face into it. And I was no long lying in bed. I was sitting up; I was…hugging someone? With sudden abruptness I opened my eyes and jumped back. It's awfully difficult to jump from a sitting position, so I more or less just kind of scooted over quickly. It took me a minute to focus—I was still in the room which made me think I was still dreaming.

"It's okay—it's just me." Edward said. "I just got back and you were sleeping. But when you started screaming I woke you up. Are you okay?"

Me screaming? I had never in my entire life screamed in my sleep. It was kind of embarrassing. But then I realized I was hugging Edward. Edward! I didn't realize how much I liked him until that moment. He was so strong and his skin was soft but manly at the same time. And he smelled heavenly: slightly salty with a strong (but not overpowering) aroma of trees. Although I was probably only in his hold for mere seconds, I kept replaying the moment over and over. I wished for nothing more than to be back in his arms, surrounded by his wonderfully defined muscles and warm body. I couldn't control my thoughts; I was so transfixed, it was as if he put me in a trance.

"Bella?"

"My God, you smell amazing." The words just kind of slurred out of my mouth.

"Ummm…come again?"

Reality hit me like a fucking brick to the head. All I could think was: oh fuck! Did I really just say he smelled good? Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap…say something! I attempted to find rhyming words so he might think he just misunderstood me. You have no idea how hard it is to rhyme so goddamn quickly!

"By God's view, hell's a-raising."

"What?" Edward looked more confused than ever. I had to control the laughter fighting to get out.

"My dream; I was fighting alongside angels as all hell broke loose. The demons and fire; it was quite terrifying. I guess I've watched one too many apocalypse movies. I'm sorry, I don't usually have nightmares."

"Oh. Are you sure you're okay?" His arms were still slightly stretched out; as if he were worried I was going to pass out at any time.

"I'm fine, really. I'm sorry I grabbed you." I was so not sorry I grabbed him.

"Don't be. You do look tired though; you better get some rest while you still can. I brought some muffins and some orange juice—I hope that's okay." He got up and walked towards the door. "I'm going to go, but I'll be back tonight. It's not yet 6am—oh, here you can take my watch, I'll go get another one today—so you should have at least a few hours of sleep." He looked pained to leave and I felt pain at the thought of him leaving. "I…I wish I could stay, but I need to go take care of a few things. Please be careful and try to…I don't know…try not to get too hurt."

"Ha, I'll do my best. Thank you, for everything." I said.

And with that beautiful smile, he opened the door and left for the day.


	7. Chapter 11

**A/N:** Thanks for the reviews! They really do keep me motivated. A new chapter should hopefully be up tomorrow as well (class is overrated anyway)! And these last couple chapters seemed much longer when i was writing them; but looking at them now, they look awfully short. I'll try and make the next ones longer.

**11**

After Edward left I went back to sleep. I didn't have any nightmares, or any dreams for that matter. It was exactly what I needed—I slept like a rock; it was amazing. Well, amazing until I was rudely awakened by one of the guys. At first I was so confused about what was going on. The blankets had been ripped off the bed and there was a man crawling toward me from the foot of the bed. After only a couple seconds though I remembered where I was and kicked him square in the face. As he fell to the side I quickly jumped out of bed and raced over to stand by the recliner. I had kicked him under his chin and his I was pretty sure he bit his lip—it was bleeding pretty badly. He slid off the other side of the bed and stood up.

"You fucking bitch!" He spit a glob of blood onto the floor. "We can do this one of two ways: one, I kick your ass and then have my way with you, or two, you be a good little girl and come over here for daddy." When he tried to smile I saw the blood covering his teeth.

"Wow, what lovely options, however will I choose?" I said with oozing sarcasm.

He stared at me with perhaps the most hateful look I have ever received. I tried to recall his name, but just came up with a blank. I took the moment his little stare down gave me to look him over. He had a square face and was maybe 5'10. He was wearing black jeans and a navy blue shirt that said "Marines" on it. He had a buzz cut and no facial hair. At first I was worried that he was some kind of army guy that had apparently lost all sense of civic duty, but after seeing his slight beer gut and lack of any kind of muscle structure, I figured he hadn't seen even a day of service.

"Like what you see?" he said, noticing my inspection of him.

"Not particularly. Honestly, that buzz cut makes your head look fat." That probably wasn't the smartest thing to say, in retrospect, but I've always found that it's easier to insult people than to compliment them. Maybe that's just me though.

"Fuck you."

"Ooo, great comeback. Your other marine drop-outs teach you that one? Now, remind me, you must not have left a good impression last time, what's your name?"

"I'll have you know that the marines would be lucky to see the likes of me! I just choose other paths in life. In fact, I'm the fucking head of security for a very prominent computer company. And it's Ben, bitch; I'll make sure you remember it this time." He started to move around the bed and towards me.

"HA! Security?! You're nothing more than a rent-a-cop! I should've known you weren't anything more—letting a little girl like me getting you to bleed. What's the matter? Your retarded ass job won't get you any ladies? You have to kidnap women to get laid?"

"Shut the fuck up!" He was getting angrier, but he stopped walking to listen to me talk.

"Oh no—you didn't even kidnap me! You had to join a group that kidnaps women for you and locks them in a room! You're so pathetic you can't even rape women on your own!"

"I said SHUT UP!" He yelled as he lunged towards me.

I'm not sure what he was planning to do first; his arms were stretched out like he

was either going to strangle or grab me. Either way, I ducked and dove for the ground, barreling into his legs. He went down harder than I would have imagined—his hands protected his face, but he still hit head first. I rolled away from his feet and scrambled to stand up. I was up and by the foot of the bed when he grabbed my left leg. I turned around and tried to punch him in the face, but he grabbed my wrist. He yanked me down and I collapsed onto my knees—he dropped his grip on my leg. I brought my other hand, curled into a fist, down on his head, yet didn't let go of his hold even as his head jerked the other way. In another desperate attempt to get my hand free I twisted it down and against his thumb—what my old taekwondo instructor used to tell us to do—and it finally broke free. At this point we were both about three feet from the end of the bed and maybe a foot away from the desk. I had no idea what to do next and was still contemplating the options when he lurched up and pinned me to the floor.

"Keep struggling whore, I like it!" As he spoke drops of blood fell onto my face; I turned so it wouldn't get in my mouth or eyes and several drops landed on my cheeks. I was completely disgusted and helpless in this position. He grabbed both my wrists again and held them above my head. He was kneeling with his legs on the outside of mine and his face just inches from my own. As much as I didn't want to come in contact with his bloodied face, I knew I had to do something. So, I slammed my forehead into his nose with as much possible force as I could muster—the awkward position putting quite the strain on my neck and shoulders. He screamed in pain and let go of my arms to grab cover his face. I took the opportunity to shove him off of me and stand up.

"You broke my nose! You broke my fucking nose!!" Ben screamed.

I wasn't sure what to do next. I thought about kicking him while he was down, but he seemed like he was in enough pain already. I wanted him to be hurt enough to want to leave and get help but not in so much pain that he got irrational and attacked me like a madman. I settled for going to stand behind the recliner.

"You are going to regret this, you stupid bitch, you just wait." He said as he stood up, hands still clutching his nose and blood covering the front of his shirt. "You just fucking wait!" He took the key out of his pocket and left the room. I wasn't scared of his retaliation—he wasn't really an intimidating person—his words, however, did leave me feeling a little worried. What if they started coming in two at a time? What if they started to bring in weapons? I can only defend myself so well against these men and if they started bringing more muscle or something else… It was not a pretty thought. I went into the bathroom and washed off my face (again with that stupid scented soap; what I wouldn't give for a regular face scrub) and fixed my hair into a tighter messy bun. I didn't really spend much time in there; I hated to see myself all bruised up like that.

Once I was in the room I went and dug out the watch Edward had given me this morning which I hid in one of the desk drawers. Thursday, December 5th, 1:00pm . . . was that all? I couldn't believe I had at least twelve more hours until I could see Edward again. That thought was entirely too depressing. That little voice inside my head chirped up again: should we really be investing so much in Edward? Are we sure he is completely trust-worthy? I hated this stupid voice. Of course I could trust him—the sincerity with which he spoke when he talked about those girls he couldn't save…no, there was no way he could be anything but innocent. Unfortunately, I didn't have much time to continue my thoughts on Edward—James had just walked into the room.


	8. Chapter 12

**A/N:** thank you thank you thank you for all the reviews! and holy crap this chapter was so much fun writing! It's totally the longest one yet!

**12**

"Well, well, Bella, seems like you've been quite busy these past couple days." James said as he walked into the room carrying what looked to be a to-go box from any number of restaurants.

"What do you mean?" I carefully resumed my position by the recliner. Mike may be my biggest threat on the physical side, but James' whole personality scared the living shit out of me. There was just something about his serenity and whole nonchalant attitude that made him creepy beyond belief.

"In all my years of organizing this little production of mine, not once has a girl ever fought as hard as you have; and you've only been here for such a short amount of time. Sure most of them put up a fight the first few times, but mostly they just give in and recognize the fact that it'll be easier if they don't fight it. I don't know if you are just too stubborn or too stupid to realize it yourself and I've really got mixed emotions about our situation."

"Okay…" I was at a complete loss for words.

"Because, you see, my members have real lives; they have families and jobs and when they show up all bruised, people start asking questions. I can't have people asking questions Bella. So naturally, I'm a bit upset with you on that account. However, I have been noticing these last couple of years that some of my members are becoming exceedingly pathetic. When I first started this club, the members were all…beautiful." He talked with a lot of nostalgia; like the way that people talk about their first pets. "We were one unit: strong and uncompromised. If you had been with us in those days, woo boy, this would be a whole different story. They wouldn't have put up with your disobedience. Unfortunately, those men are long gone…all moved on with their lives, and I'm stuck with this group of men who seem to have lost their dedication. Do you know what I'm talking about Bella?" James set the container down on the desk and took a few steps in my direction.

"Umm, sure…" I took a step back.

"I mean, it's really starting to make me angry; I've put a lot of work into this project and they all just act like it's their _right_ to be a member. And when you showed up and started fighting back, well, they came a running, demanding that I do something to make you stop. And you know what? I don't know if I should. I think that perhaps these men could use a little struggle, should fight for what they want, don't you think so?"

"Uh, yeah…?"

"But then we run into the people asking questions problem. Don't you see my predicament Bella?"

"I'm sorry?" I was so terrified I couldn't think. He was staring at me with a blank face and curious eyes. Despite his words, he wasn't particularly showing any kind of emotion—no anger, no humor, no nothing; it was as if he were reading from a textbook.

"So, I've put a lot of thinking into it, and I've come up with a proposition for you." He said after a moment.

"And what's that?"

"Well, first of all, you have to stop hitting my guys in the face. I promised them that much. But in return they won't hit you in the face either. In all honesty, a bruised face like yours is not much of a turn on. Of course, we will have punishments set in place, should either party ignore these rules. Does that seem fair, Bella?"

"I suppose so…" I was extremely happy that they wouldn't hit me in the face anymore, but also mad that I couldn't hit them. Going after an attackers head is one of the easiest ways to deter him. Now all I had left were the …

"And no hitting them in the genitals either. A few of them are actually trying to start families and we can't have you damaging the family jewels. If I find out you have been hurting them there, then I'll just have to take a more firm stance with you. I hope you've realized that we've been very nice to you so far—I've even brought you some pasta today. If, however, these few guidelines are not followed, I can assure you that your time here will become increasingly unpleasant. Do we have an agreement?"

"No face or ball hitting—why don't you just tie me up and stop the resistance all together?" I said.

"Oh, Bella. Most of my guys like the struggle—as long as that's all you're doing. They don't appreciate you actually fighting them off. Besides, have you not been listening? I want my members to realize that you are not my gift to them: you are an opportunity that they must seize."

"You're one sick fuck, you know that?" My disgust with James finally overcame my fear.

"Come now, you haven't seen anything yet." He replied with a smile and then a sigh. "That'll be all from me today; here's some lunch, I hope you enjoy it. And remember our new rules. I would hate to have to show you what we consider punishment here." He didn't look like he would hate that at all. "See you later." He said as he left the room.

I was not happy about the new situation. How was I supposed to defend myself? He had basically left me with my hands tied behind my back. Normally I'm not big on following stupid rules, but in this place, with their capacity for evil, I really, really, did not want to find out what would happen to me if I decided to slap a guy. I had no idea what I was going to do. I stood in the middle of the room for a few minutes just trying to think. The smell of the pasta finally reached me though and reminded me that I was hungry. I guess breaking guys' noses really works up the appetite. As I sat down at the desk and ate the food (chicken Alfredo that was remarkably good) I went back to wondering what Ben would do. Would he seek revenge? Would he just leave me alone long enough for his nose to heal? I hoped for the latter, although it seemed highly improbable.

* * *

I had finished my lunch and was sitting on the recliner trying to read some more Hamlet when I finally found out what revenge Ben would seek. They entered the room all at once: Ben with his black and blue face, Mike with his sheer enormity and tattoos, and another guy that I couldn't recall a name for. The last guy shut the door quickly and they all just stared at me for a moment. Mike was holding something behind his back—I wasn't sure what though. I remained seated—there was no way I could win here. Panicking would do me no good and I honestly could think of no strategy, so I just sat there, placing my reading material on the ground.

"Hi, Bella. Ready for some fun?" Mike said, sadistically, as he revealed what he was holding: barbed wire.

After that, they were on me like vultures. I think I managed to kick the nameless guy in the stomach and scratched the shit out of Mike's arm, but it was only a matter of seconds until they had me. Ben and the other guy held my legs while Mike grabbed my arms; they dragged me to the bed and held me down. Mike started wrapping one of the wires around the posts at the head of the bed and then wrapped it around my wrist. I struggled with the arm that wasn't tied down yet, hitting him wherever I could; I didn't care about any stupid rules right then. It was a futile attempt: Mike couldn't care less that I was hitting him and he had both my wrists tied down in mere minutes. I was kicking my feet as much as humanly possible, but with one guy for each leg it was impossible to break free. Once they started tying my legs down, resisting was becoming more and more painful. The barbs dug into my skin and tore flesh with every movement. I resorted to screaming and cursing, crying and pleading; nothing worked. Once I was all tied down, Mike and the other guy left, but not before Mike found it appropriate to grab me by my hair and lick the side of my face.

"See you soon" Mike whispered as he left the room, following the nameless guy.

"Just you and me baby, just you and me." Ben looked happier than a kid at Disneyland.

When he first got on top of me, he settled for groping and grabbing. I tried my best not to move but the wires still cut. After a few minutes Ben finally got excited and pulled up my skirt. I closed my eyes and retreated. At first it was hard to escape reality, hard to ignore the searing pain and sweaty man on top of me. Eventually I succeeded though; I made it back to my beautiful wooded mountains.

_It was fall and the colors were amazing: fiery oranges, burnt reds, and golden yellows. The aspens and oaks desperately holding on their leaves even as the slight breeze threatened to take them away. The evergreens held strong; proving that their pine needles were no match for the changing season. The sun was just about to set completely—just peeking out one last time above the horizon before moving on for the night. The ground was covered in fallen leaves and small shrubs; I was sitting, leaning against a massive oak. The wind rustling through the branches was such a comforting and familiar sound. And as I closed my eyes to focus on the noises around me, a distant owl hooted, perhaps searching for a mate. Everything was in order, everything was as it should be: peaceful. There were hikers—a small family: two kids and both parents—crossing the stream about a hundred yards away. _

"I told you I'd be back!" Mike's harsh voice thrust me back into reality for a few minutes. He towered over me, kneeling directly above me. His weight made the bed sink lower, as it did the wires cut deeper into my skin. He got down to business right away, wrapping his hands around my neck as he shoved into me; his giant hands squeezing tighter and tighter as I struggled for just an ounce of air. Just as I was about to pass out, he would release his grasp and my lungs would expand with fiery joy. He would return to his tight grip though, keeping me just on the edge of unconsciousness, awake enough for him to see the complete horror in my eyes. The pain was unbearable and I fought my way back to my woods.

_They were following the trail back to the parking lot, probably excited to go home and have a nice warm dinner after a long day in the woods. I didn't want to go with them though; I was content to sit and enjoy nature. The air was crisp and cool but I was wrapped in my favorite childhood blanket—a navy blue fleece one that was large enough to surround three adults—and was perfectly warm. In fact, I was so comfortable that I was beginning to drift off…in another world I vaguely heard the sounds of doors opening and slamming shut, of new men coming and going, of time passing slowly…but that was a world all to distant to even come close to piercing the barrier my woods created. Here, time was nothing, it just didn't exist. The sun never set and I sat there forever, just staring off into the woods, staring at the vibrant colors and endless line of mountain tops. It was peaceful. It was home. I started to drift off even further, letting the darkness envelope me…_

"Bella!"

_Something was trying to pull me out, to take me away from my safe haven. I didn't want to leave, I wanted to stay. The voice made the blackness go away, but I was still in my woods. I won't leave, I tried to tell it. _

"Bella wake up!"

_No! I won't leave, you can't make me! See, the sun hasn't even gone down yet; there's still light, still time. I looked down as something started to burn my arms: blood was trickling out of my wrists. My ankles started to burn as well. My blanket disappeared. How dare this happen! That voice was bringing evil into my woods! _

"Bella, please! Please wake up! Goddammit, snap out of it!"

My eyes finally opened. Well, opened in the metaphorical sense; they were horribly dry and as I blinked several times I had a snaking suspicion that I hadn't bothered to close my eyes while I wandered off into the woods. I was still tied to the bed, the barbed wire still embedded in my skin. I turned my head and saw the only face that I would ever want to see: Edward's. He was standing next to the bed, leaning over me, with my face in his hands. His eyes were full of fear and worry.

"Hey" I mumbled. My throat was sore and burned like a motherfucker.

"Oh, thank God." Edward sighed with relief. "I was running out of ideas on how to wake you. I can't believe they did this. I am so sorry."

"It's not your fault. I shouldn't have broken Ben's nose."

"No, they shouldn't have done this. James is going to be furious. He'll discipline them for sure. Bella, I swear, if I had known they did this, I would have come sooner. I am so sorry, I didn't know."

"Really, it's not your fault. What time is it anyway?"

"Almost midnight. Most everyone has left. I think Aro might still be here though—I'll go get him; he can probably take these off much less painfully than I can." He started to leave for the door.

"No! Please, please don't leave me." My voice cracked as I fought down the panic rising in my chest. "I don't need him."

"Are you sure? The wires are pretty deep; it's going to hurt when I take them out."

"It's okay, I swear." Tears trickled down my face. I didn't want him to go and I certainly didn't want any other man coming in here when I was so vulnerable. I hated Edward seeing me like this, but it was Edward. If it were anyone else I doubt I would have stayed in reality—I would have most certainly retreated back into the woods as quickly as possible.

"All right" he sighed. "At least let me go get some supplies. I'll be right back I promise." He left before I could argue with him. As I waited I tried to recall how many men had been in here. It had been what, 11 hours? That made it…almost Friday. If I were back home, if I had never been kidnapped, I would probably be looking up movie times. Horror, action, drama, comedy…I loved them all. I probably spent just as much time at the movies as I did in class. I tried to think about what movie was coming out today. I couldn't remember though. I focused as hard as I could on my favorite movies to ignore the horrible pain that covered my entire body. My back and shoulders ached from being tied down all day, my ankles and wrists were burning from being cut, my throat was a fucking mess, and I was thoroughly sore from all the men that had visited me throughout the day. I had only replayed Stardust and Phantom of the Opera in my mind when Edward returned.

"How are you holding up?" He asked as he set down some bandages, Advil, and new sheets on the desk and walked over to the bed.

"Peaches and cream."

He chuckled a little and gave me a glance of that oh so beautiful smile. "If it hurts too much, just tell me. I'll be as gentle as possible, but it's still going to hurt. I'm sorry."

"Just do it."

He cut the wires so I was no longer tied to the bed—that didn't really hurt at all. Pulling the wire out of my skin, however, was a whole different matter. I screamed twice and had to bite my lip to stop from whimpering every two seconds. He kept apologizing and worked as quickly as possible. Within maybe ten minutes he had my wrists and ankles free from the barbed wire and bandaged up. I stood up and tried to stretch out my muscles. Once I was up I realized how badly I had to use the restroom and told Edward I'd be right back. I took the pain pills with me and washed them down with some lovely sink water. I also took the chance to look at my neck: I could see Mike's distinct finger marks. I had an entire ring of bruising around my neck. It was horrible. When I got back into the room Edward was finishing up with the bed—he had taken off the old, bloodied sheets, and replaced them with new ones.

"Thank you. Your bandaging skills are really good, by the way." I said as I made my way to the recliner.

Edward laughed a little as he said "let's just say I've had a lot of practice."

Before I sat down, I grabbed Edward's hand and pulled him to face me. "I mean, it; thank you. If it weren't for you, I…I don't know how I would survive. You have no idea how lucky I feel to have you here." Despite the pain and exhaustion I was feeling, I was overwhelmed with nervousness as I reached out to hug him. I had wanted to be back in his arms ever since this morning, but I didn't want to cross some kind of boundary or make him uncomfortable. I needn't have worried though. Edward embraced me with a gentle vigor that made my heart want to explode. His strong and warm body pressed tightly against mine as his arms wrapped around me. We stood there for a moment, just holding each other, as he whispered into my ear, "Saving you is the only thing that matters to me any more."


	9. Chapter 13

**A/N:** Sorry about the wait and thanks for the reviews! You guys are awesome. Also i think i might do and Edward point of view because it would certainly be the easiest way to explain what's going on with Mike and James... i dont know for sure though yet.

**13**

Edward left around 3 am Friday morning and I went to sleep shortly after that. I wouldn't have minded him staying, but he needed the rest too and both of us sleeping posed an unnecessary risk. That little part in my head that still didn't trust him was almost silent now. The time I got to spend with him was so wonderful that I could practically forget where I was; it was such a relief. I slept soundly for almost a full 9 hours. It was so amazing—I don't think I even tossed or turned once. It was easy to fall asleep as I just imagined myself cuddling with Edward. When I woke up I dug out the watch and saw that it was almost noon; I hadn't slept for that long since I had been taken. As I contemplated what I would do until the men started their usual attacks, my stomach growled. I really hoped someone would come with my meal soon. About an hour later Aro, the doctor, came in and luck would have it, he was carrying a tray with a bowl full of cereal and a bottle of milk.

"How are you today Bella?" He asked as he set down the tray and pulled out the pills.

"Okay, I guess." Besides the slight pain where the wires had been, my head was actually hurting less than normal. I guessed the concussion was going away.

"Good. Well, here are the pills, and I also threw in some pain relievers." He handed me the pills—2 white, 1 pink, and 2 Ibuprofen

"Thank you. I appreciate that." I said. I washed down the pills with some milk; it wasn't as cold as I would have liked, but it wasn't bad.

"Also, I'm going to need to give you a tetanus shot and take a look at your bandages. Where'd you get them by the way?" He asked.

"Umm, oh, these, I…uh…I got them…umm…I found them in the bathroom." I was starting to panic. What if he knew someone brought them in for me? What if he suspected Edward?

"Alright, well you look like you've done a pretty good job. I just have some ointment I'd like to put on your cuts if you don't mind." Aro didn't look like he really believed me—hell, for all I knew, he could have been the one to stock the bathroom—but he didn't press the matter further.

"Sure." I went and sat down at the desk and started to unwrap the bandages. It was pretty gross. The blood had dried and you could still see how deep the cuts were. There were also bruises starting to form.

Aro sighed and shook his head. "Mike sure is one sadistic son of a bitch. I hope you know that the women here usually don't get treated to this kind of behavior. What he did was completely unacceptable. And if it makes you feel any better, James is speaking to him right now." He looked up to me and smiled, and then leaned in as if to tell a secret, "and if you ask me, I don't think speaking is the only thing he'll do."

"Is that so?"

"You better believe it honey; James has had problems with Mike for quite some time now. Personally, I think James should just kick him out, but a lot of other guys are siding with Mike and might actually rebel if Mike is forced out. There's so much drama around here, you'd think we were all sword swinging pirates debating mutiny!" Aro had already moved on to my ankles. He worked fast and smoothly—it didn't even hurt a bit as he rewrapped them. "Yep, James better do something soon or I fear he'll lose all control. It's hard to even tell how things got this way—so little discipline—because when I first started here, everything ran as smooth as a good, water-based lubricating gel. James wouldn't put up with this kind of malarkey. Just between you and me: about a year into this business somehow a frat guy at the college found out about this little operation and tried to blackmail James into letting him join." Aro finished with my ankle bandages and stood up.

"What happened?" I asked.

"James eliminated the threat, if you know what I mean—frat guy just up and disappeared. Whole town searched for him, but they didn't even find a body. I tell ya, there must be something going on with him because the old James was one mean mother fucker—Mike wouldn't stand a chance."

"Wow." I was completely dumbfounded, yet hopeful that James would really fuck Mike up. Talking with Aro reminded me of all the gossiping Alice and I would partake in. It was rather nice. "Why are you telling me all this anyway, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Well, it's not like it'll affect what happens to you much. And it's nice having someone to talk to. James is growing crankier by the day and I've never found the others to be very good conversationalists. Heck, you need an English to White-Trash dictionary just to talk to Phil." He finished wrapping my ankle and stood up.

"True story" I laughed; it was nice talking with Aro. I mean, sure, he was pretty much going to hell for helping to keep me here, but he was kind of funny. Well, funny as of then, that is. Once he had finished with his doctoring, I was worried that he would move on to what the other men liked to do. I watched him closely as he went and threw away the old bandages in the bathroom and came back into the room—trying to see if he was getting ready to attack me. I guess he noticed my worried expression though.

"Hahaha, you don't have to worry about me, darling. I'm just here for the money. James pays me to keep you healthy for the duration of your stay. Besides, I don't swing that way." He said and winked at me with a smile. I smiled back at him. There were lots of people in this world who did evil things for money—so although I still wished he was a better person, he wasn't so completely horrible. And who knew, maybe there was room for him to change. I was still smiling as Aro left the room. The last 12 hours had been rather pleasant, especially when compared to the twelve before that.

* * *

No one came in for a long time after Aro. By 3pm I was starting to get anxious. Why weren't they coming? Had something happened? Were they arrested? As much as I appreciated the break, I was dying of curiosity and boredom. I tried to read some more of Hamlet, but I couldn't read more than a couple pages. I settled for napping and daydreaming. I wished more than anything that Edward would come; I have to say, he occupied probably 90% of my daydreams that day. By 5pm I was starting to get hungry again. The cereal (lucky charms) was good and all, but it really didn't keep me full for very long. And I was so entirely bored I thought I would die! Just when I thought I was going to lose my mind though (I would never in a million years survive prison) the door opened and James walked in. He was carrying a bag from Burger King and set it on the desk. I had been sitting in the recliner, but as soon as the door began to open I took up my usual defensive stance in the middle of the room.

"Good evening, Bella." James said with a smile.

"Hi." I was suddenly very nervous. James terrified me and I didn't trust him for a second.

"Why don't you sit down," he motioned to the recliner, "we need to talk."

I wasn't entirely sure what to do, so I just stood there. I didn't want to make myself vulnerable by sitting down, but he seemed genuinely uninterested in doing anything other than talking. He even pulled out the desk chair and sat down himself. After a moment or two of contemplation I finally decided to sit down.

"Thank you. And don't worry—today is your day off. I think it's necessary considering what you went through yesterday." He said.

"Oh. Okay."

"And about that, I am truly sorry. I'm sure that must not have been very pleasant for you." He sounded sincere enough… "I'm not entirely sure what Mike was thinking, pulling a stunt like that. But no need to fret, I believe I've made my point clear to him. No one is allowed to cause you lasting physical damage, nor are they allowed to use any tools or outside help."

"And what happens if they do?" I asked with slight attitude. It pissed me off that he acted like he was doing such a huge favor for me, when he was still keeping me here, still planning on killing me when he was done.

"Excuse me?" he sneered with obvious disgust. I hadn't seen such emotion from James since I met him. "It's none of your business how I manage my own people. How dare you imply that I can't control them! You fucking bitch! I have half a mind to just end your time here right now! Fucking questioning my methods and shit!" He stood up and knocked down the chair as he stormed towards me; towering above me like a massive storm. I cowered back and tried to disappear into the chair. "What the fuck is it to you how I deal with my own guys? Huh, bitch? Do you know so much more than me? C'mon, Bella, speak the fuck up." Apparently I had struck a nerve.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like that…I was just…I was just curious." I didn't look him in the eyes—as angry as he was I was positive he would take it as a sign of aggression; like a retarded bear or something. No wait, calling James a bear would be insulting to the entire bear population. James was certainly in his own world. He stared me down for another minute or so before just suddenly calming down. It was as if someone had just wiped his memory. He relaxed, went and picked up the chair and pulled out his keys to leave.

"Have a good night, Bella. We'll see you tomorrow." And with no other show of emotion he left the room.


End file.
